Higginf 


The  land  of  sunshine 


THE  LIBRARY 
OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


r 7i 


A^ 


k 


\\  \-% 


V  \ 


i':\\ 


\ 


of 
^unskine 


k 


oy 


0^ 


\J^ 


THE 


>?*^^,\\-:3. 


^iiii^if 


Land  of  SuNSHiNfi. 


By  C.  a.  HIGGINvS. 


II^LUSTRATIONS   BY 

J.  T.  McCUTCHEON. 


CHICAGO: 
'I'riE  Hf:nry  O.  Shepard  Company. 

I8'   2. 


CONTENTS. 


I.  Something  about  Climate,  with  reference  to 
New  Mexico  in  general  and  Las  Vegas 
Hot  Springs  in  particular, 5 

II.     A   Sanitarium   for   the   Sick,   a   Recuperating- 
,  place  for  the  Overworked,  and  a  Pleasure 

Resort  for  the  rest  of  Mankind,      ...     15 

III.     New  Mexican  Sketches  : 

1.  A  Backward  View, 29 

2.  Touching  Burros, 33 

3.  The  Pecos  Church, 37 

4.  Mountain  Trout  and  Quail,    ....  43 


876245 


Somctbing  about  Climate,  witb  reference  to  IRew 
/llbeitco  (n  general  auD  Xas  Wegas  Ibot  Springs 
in  particular,      sssssssss 


r^"^-^-?^ 


."^^'^^4i'-:^'<'' 


tIu  -^  point  of  latitude  New  Mexico 
\%^     is  southern,  just  as  in  point  of 
fH!!)    longitude  it  is  western,    for  it 
V         lies  wholly  below  the  37th  par- 
allel    and     extends     sovitherly 
j:~-    beyond    the    northern    line   of 
every   one    of  the   Gvilf  states 
except  Florida. 

Is  it  then  a  land  of 

n 

relaxing     winters     and 


torrid  summers?     By  no  means.     In  imagining 
an  untried  climate  in  southern  latitudes  it  is  a 
common   error  to  overlook  two  very  important 
factors.     Elevation  above  sea-level   is  the  first ; 
humidity,  or  its  absence,  is  the  second.     With 
regard   to   the   first,    it  should    be   remembered 
that  an   elevation   of  approxi-  , 
mately    800    feet     above     any      -^ 
given     level     is     climatically  ',-4^ 
equivalent  to  a  degree  of  lati- 
tude ;    that   is   to   say,  an   ele- 
vation of  from  5,600   to   7,000 
feet    above     sea-level     on    the 
36th     parallel     should,     other 
things  being  equal,  be  of  the 


same  temperature  with  sea-lev«l  between  the  42nd  and 
44th  degrees  of  north  latitude.  Now  5,600  feet  is  the 
exact  mean  elevation  of  the  entire  territory  of  New 
Mexico  ;   thirty-six  degrees  is  the  approximate  latitude 


-^. 


'^r:r.-    _: 


of  Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs,  and  7,000  feet  its  altitude. 
On  the  other  hand,  all  the  New  England  seaside  sum- 
mer resorts,  from  Bar  Harbor  to  Newport,  lie  between 
the  42nd  and  44th  parallels. 

You  see  the  point  of  the  comparison  :  the  climate 
of  Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs  would  be  practically  the 
same  as  that  of  the  New  England  coast  resorts,  pro- 
vided other  things  were  equal. 

But  other  things  are  not  equal.     There  is  an  enorm- 
ous   diflference    in 
favor  of  New  Mex- 
— _  ico,    due    to     the 

almost  entire  ab- 
sence of  humidity 
from  the  atmos- 
phere. It  is  a  coun- 
try of  sparse  rainfall, 
and  while  it  has  sev- 
eral important  rivers 
and  many  small  scat- 


tered  streams,  the 
fact  tliat  in  agricul- 
ture  it   is   almost 
wholly  dependent 
upon       irrigation 
shows   a   decided    lack   of 
disseminated   moisture. 
The  reports  of  the  United 
States  Signal  Service  con- 
tain statistics  showing  the  humidity  of  most  localities 
throughout   the   country,   and   from    those   reports   the 
following  figures  are  taken  : 

New    England    73%,    Middle    Atlantic    States    74%, 
South  Atlantic  States  79%,  Ohio  Valley  and  Tennessee 
73  % ,  Florida  75  % ,  New  York  City  72  % , 
San   Francisco  76%,  New  Orleans  79%,      ,    -/  ■       \y 
Territory  of  New  Mexico  29%   to 
43%,  according  to  locality. 

The    contrast    presented    by 
these  figures  is  still   more 
strongly   marked   when    it  -f^;    \.  i' 
is     remembered     that    by  ^  [  ^  " 
humidity    is     meant    only    \  '' 
the    amount    of    invisible 
moisture   in  the  air.     The 
frequent  visitations  of  rain 
and  fog  to  which  the  sea- 
side  localities   named    are 

subjected,  make  the  amount  of  actual  atmospheric 
moisture  miich  greater  there,  while  New  Mexico  has 
but  little  rain  and  never  knew  a  fog. 


'^   f} 


The  area  of  the  territory  is  122,444 
square  miles,  whose  mean  altitude,  as 
already  stated,  is  5,600  feet.  'One-fiftieth 
of  that  area  rises  above  10,000  feet,  and 
it  possesses  several  mountain  peaks  at 
least  13,000  feet  high.  This  pronoiniced 
altitude  of  an  entire  territory,  averaging  nearly  as  high 
as  the  famous  crest  of  New  England's  giant,  Mt. 
Washington,  would  certainly  be  characterized  by  ex- 
treme cold  in  winter  were  it  not,  first,  for  its  southerly 
latitude,   and   secondly,  for   the    extraordinary   dryness 


A   DISTANT  MOLNTAIN. 


of  the  air.  In  point  of  fact,  the  combination  of  these 
three  factors  results  in  a  temperate  climate  whose 
equability  is  but  little  affected  by  summer  or  winter 
solstice. 

There    is   hardly   a   day   in    the    year  when   the 
most   sensitive    invalids    may   not   be   out   of   doors 
with  impunity,   nor  is   there   any  season  when  the' 
infirm  may  not  and  do  not  make 
excursions  among  the  picturesque 
hills    and    inviting    canons,     and 
picnic    on    the   ground.     In    mid- 


u 


'■*: 
"^i 


i'V- 


summer  the  rays  of  the  sun  are  ardent,  '  ^'_,;' 
but  never  harmful.  No  one  was  ever  over- 
heated in  New  Mexico  by  work  or  exercise  in 
the  sun  ;  and  in  the  shade,  and  at  night,  it  is 
always  ccol,  for  the  dry,  pure  air  contains  nothing 
that  can  be  heated.  So,  in  winter,  while  nights  are 
often  cool,  they  never  approach  the  eastern  experience 
^^  *^  of  winter  weather,  and  with  the  rising  of 
the  sun  the  temperate  warmth  returns. 
Snow  buries  the  distant  lofty  ranges, 
<ind  in  the  night,  at  rare  intervals, 
falls  lightly  upon  the  lower  levels, 
'  but  never  remains  there  save  for  a 
day  or  two  in  patches  among 
the  caiion  shades. 

One  hundred  and  eighty- 
\  seven  days  of  unclouded  sky, 
^^  »  one  hundred  and  thirty-nine 
'>^,;j^  days  when  sunshine  predomi- 
nates, and  thirty -nine  cloudy 
dajs  make  up  the  average  year  in 
New  Mexico, 
and  of  the  thirty- 
nine  days  that  are 
cloudy  there  is  hardly  one  on 
which  the  sun  does  not  shine  at 
least  a  part  of  the  time.  On 
account  of  this  preponderance  of  *j 
clear  sky  the  territory  has  long  )j^ 
been  known  as  The  Land  of  '* 
Sunshine.     How  it  can  be  a  land 


■^ ,'*■'  ''■  ''"i'^i^-f^'^'^'''  .»V.  ^, 


■'C 


of  sunshine  iu  southern  latitudes  and  be  free  from 
oppressive  summer  heat,  and  how  it  can  lie  at  an  alti- 
tude equal  to  that  of  the  White  Mountains  and  be  free 
from  severe  winter  cold,  should  now  be  plain. 

But  what  is 
the  average  sum- 
mer and  winter 
temperature  ? 

Now  of  all 
the  irresponsi- 
ble combinations 
known  to  num- 
bers, the  most  abandoned  is  probably  the  average ; 
and  of  all  averages  the  mean  temperature  of  a  given 
locality  is,  without  any  doubt,  the  most  barren  of 
information.  Imagine,  if  you  please,  a  country  whose 
temperature  is  uniformly  in  summer  6i°,  and  in  win- 
ter 59°  ;  and  another  whose  summer  and  winter  tem- 
peratures are  respectively  ioo°  and  20°.  The  average 
temperature  of  each  country  is  60°,  yet  the  one  where 
the  thermometer  blisters  for  six  months  and  congeals 
the  rest  of  the  time  is  represented  by  the  same  figure 
as  the  other  where  there  is  a  variation  of  only  2°  in 
all  the  year.  ,,i|l 

The    record    of    five    years'     . 
obsen^ations  at  l,as  Vegas         ;  '^'*' 'i^'"      % 
Hot  Springs  gives  the  fol-  ■■; 

lowiog     mean     tempera-        j    i. 
tures:  '  .  .  '|vfif"' 

January  41.0,  February 
49.0,    March   56.0,    April 


Till-;  SKASiin-; 


58.0,  May  61.4,  June  71.4,  July  74.0,  August 
71.9,  September  65.0,  October  55.4,  November 
53.7,  December  52.0,  or  a  meau  annual  tem- 
perature of  59.07.  What  this  record  cannot 
communicate  is  the  fact  that  the  citizen  of 
New  Mexico  has  his  cold  winter  weather  at 
night,  when  he  sits  by  the  fire  or  lies  in  bed 
under  an  extra  blanket :  while  by  day  he 
hardly  knows  the  use  of  an  overcoat.  It 
does  not  communicate  the  fact  that  in 
midsummer  the  blanket  is  still  in  de- 
mand, but  the  heat  of  noonday  is  never  dis-  ^ 
tressful. 

In  the  East  the  mean  annual  temperature  is 
an  averaging  of  violent  extremes  of  heat  and 
cold.  In  New  Mexico  it  represents  the  habitual 
rather  than  the  average. 


IN  Till'   1: A 


WINTER 
IN  TIIK  NORTH. 


(CAR  IN  NKW  MKXIv 


II. 


a  Sanitarium  for  tbe  Sich,  a  IRecuperatingsplace 
tor  tbe  ©vervvorftcD,  an&  a  iIMeasure=resort  tor 
tbc  rest  of  /IftanftinJ>.      =      =      =      =      =      = 


|.1n-. 


T  happens  that  there  is  scarce 
J  ,  another  known  climate  so  absolutely 
*^  I  :  friendly  to  man  and  so  valuable  an 
ilu./  ally  against  the  innumerable  forms 
of  disease  that  lour  upon  him  all 
the. way  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave.  Its  equability 
at  a  comfortable  temperature,  its  pure  air  free  from 
humidity  and  rarefied  by  altitude,  and  its  almost  un- 
clouded sun,  render  New  Mexico  the  most  desirable 
resort  in  the  whole  world  for  those  who  are  afflicted 
with  any  form  of  lung  or  throat  disease  ;  and  as  such 
it  is  rapidly  being  adopted  by  the  medical  fraternity, 
not  only  in  the  United  States  but  in  several  countries 
abroad.  It  is  a  fact  that  New  Mexico  numbers  among 
its  energetic  and  prosperous  citizens  hundreds  who, 
lea\-ing  their  eastern  or  northern  homes  a  few  years 
ago  with  no  better  hope  than  to  prolong  by  a  few 
months  a  life  apparently  doomed  to  speedy  termination 
by  the  scourge  of  our  time,  consumption,  have  there 
regained  perfect  health  and  the  promise  of  a  long  and 
happy  existence.  And  many  others  annually 
desert  the  harsher  regions  and  repair  to 
New  Mexico  at  the  approach  of  winter  ^"f^ 
to  preserve  their  lives.  It  is  certain  that 
consumption  can  be  arrested,  and  even 


17 


±1- 


^-^', _ 


.iliiit 


■'fii' 
.11 


permaneutly  cured,  by  residence  there,  if  the  change 
be  made  in  time.  And  the  climate  that  can  not  only 
withstand   but   conquer   so   terrible   an    adversary   is   a 

match  likewise 
for  a  long  array 
of  other  less  for- 
midable human 
ailments.  Are 
you  aware  for 
how  few  locali- 
ties in  the  world 
such  a  sweeping 
claim  can  be 
Jf^  made  without 
/*  t\  violation  of  the 
n  truth?  Do  you 
i\\  know  that  the 
complications  of 
disease  find  some 
fatal  flaw  in  nearly  every  variety  of  climate  ?  Even  New 
Mexico  makes  one  exception  in  welcoming  the  sick. 
High  altitudes  are  commonly  regarded 
as  aggravating  to  pronounced  heart  dis- 
ease, and  sufferers  from  that  malady  in 
an  advanced  stage  are  not  advised  to 
go  there  for  relief;  but  every  other  class 
of  invalid  may  confidently  anticipate 
the  most  kindly  treatment,  for  those 
ailments  which  the  soft  ministrations  ot 
climate  alone  cannot  wholly  obviate, 
yield    when    such    ministrations    are 


i8 


VICEROY'S  PALACE  AT  SANTA  FE. 


'^M 


W,^ 


supplemented  by  the  medicinal  virtues  of  the  Springs, 
to  specific  mention  of  which  at  last  we  are  come. 

Half  a  dozen  miles  northwest  from  the  old  town  of 
Las   Vegas    they 


bubble  out  of  the 
hillside,     some 
forty    of   them, 
varying   in   tem- 
perature   from 
ice-cold   to   boil- 
ing hot,  but  most  ^ 
of  them  ranging 
from  iio°  to  140° 
Fahrenheit.  How 
long   their   cura- 
tive   properties' 
have  been  known 
to  man  it  is  idle 
to  speculate,  for 
the  region   has   been  peopled  for  many  centuries,  per- 
haps   for   thousands   of  years ;   but   their   fame   among 
Mexicans  and  Indians  led  to  the  establishment  there  of 
a  frontier  United  States  army  hospital  nearly  fifty  years 
ago,  while   yet   the    northern    and   western   bounds    of 
Texas  were   the  Arkansas   River   and   the  Rio  Grande, 
and  all  west  of  the  Rio  Grande  and  south  of 
Oregon  was  Spanish  Dominion,  and  the  wild- 
erness   had   been   penetrated   by   very   few  of 
Anglo-Saxon  race.    Since  that  time  numberless 
cases  of  nearly  every  form  of  disease  suscepti-      ^  ^ 
ble   of  mitigation   have  been    either   entirely 


111* 

1  f!!f! 


19 


^4 


H. 


^-C" 


cured    or   greatly  alleviated    by  the    liberal  ■*^i^:.; 

use  of  the   spring  water   in    drinking   and  ,  v 
'=^_        , -.  bathing,  aided    by   the 'j  ' 

health -restoring  in- 
fluences of  the  climate. 
While  a  chemical 
analysis  has  no  particu-  ^  "^  -^--  - 
lar  value  for  the  average  unpro- 
fessional reader,  it  is  a  certificate 
of  character  to  such  as  understand 
its  meaning.  The  waters  of  Las 
Vegas  Hot  Springs,  therefore,  have 
been  subjected  to  careful  test  by 
Dr.  Walter   S.   Haines,  Professor  of 

Chemistry,   Rush   Medical   College,  who   states  that  in 

many  respects  they  resemble  in  chemical   composition 


4^^^ 


KIO  GRANDE 


»-<ls 


I"  11/*      the  waters  of  the  famous  hot  springs 

of  Teplitz   and   Karlsbad,    and    finds 

—  them   to   contain   special   ingredients 

in  the  amounts  set  down  below,  for 

Ki  LMKUNAix.  loiM.KP  IN  i-i      every  standard  gallon  : 

Carbonate  of  Calcium  0.89  grains. 

Carbonate  of  Magnesium. 0.15 

Carbonate  of  Sodium 8.38 

Carbonate  of  Totassium 0.28 

Sulphate  of  Sodium 3.35        " 

Chloride  of  Sodium 14.68        " 

Silica 3.50        " 

Alumina o.io        " 

Volatile  and  Organic  Matter 0.32        " 

Carbonate  of  Lithium Traces. 

Bromide  of  Sodium Trace. 

Total 31.65  grains. 

Ask  your  family  ph3-siciau  whether  or 
not  hot  natural  spring  water  so  charged  ''JuLfl 

with  chemicals   should    possess   rem-  ■^i?^. 

edial  qualities.     He  will  tell  you  that  «;«¥ 

it  belongs  to  the  class  termed  Alka- 
line-Saline, and   is   beneficial  in      „'/.  ^' 
cases  of  acute  and  chronic  rheum-    ^  ■^'•'/-    </,  ,  ..i^c/  - 
atism,  gout,  blood-poisoning,        ^  ~ ^^^^^. J ''"-''. \i^-^>^ ' 
diseases  of  the  skin,  gland-       '^^^SiM^f^  <  ".^^=1.= 
tilar  and  scrofulous  diseases,       y'  ^^LJJjr  i  1       "  "^i. 
mental  exhaustion,  debility,      ">' -^rafSi^  .^«*V-^^ 
spinal    troubles,    nervous        -Mr 
affections,  dyspepsia,  and  a     «3{iMi™Mi-. 
long  list  of  other   maladies    >^4jPHWjP|^^  b«»^^  .• 
which    for    want    of    space       '^^^aS^ft^' ' .  ,^       "i' 
must  be  compressed  into  e/           '''^^^^V'      |  /     ,  / 


si«?».^"'!.*ii5 


cetera,  et  cetera.  A  combination  of  climate 
and  mineral  water  exists  at  Las  Vegas  Hot 
Springs  which  will  effectually  rout  almost 
any  curable  disease.     The  invalid  who  can 


,™~-n„     I  V-      sit   in   that   sunshine    and   breathe   that 

."■      ;*«Mi     air ;   can  drink  that  water,  bathe  in  the 

<ffls^uv"  9  "l?";^' \  ^^^  ^^  *^>  ste^m  in  the  vapor  of  it,  lie 


:--f.,(!f^t^-f\^^~"^J^^  ^W -^\  "Ow  ot  It,  ste^m  in  tne  vapor  oi  it,  iie 

B*  l'?ir^-  :-    ~  ^'■*' packed  in  the  mud  of  it,  and  hold  fast 

;r?i  ^f:.'.  •-■>'  -s»    '^-~~     to  his  disease  through  it   all,  has  never 

r.   "||r||'V  u      i    ^^'  yet    been    met    with.     Even    imaginary 

-4_-i--         ——--;•::    ailments  give  way  before  forces  so  potent 

-'^i^^-EMJSaHiMH-i--—  No  one  who  has   taken  a 

\^i^7'''['  a?  Turkish     bath     ever    again 

flatters    himself  he   is   next   door  to 

;v„      „  godliness   after   a    common    ablution 

'  PiivS^:  with    soap    and    water ;     and   just    as    the 

Jlili.'lij    ,       '        Turkish    bath    searches    out    and    removes 


I  111  I  ^,  ' 

''fr^  /  '       unsuspected  external  accumulations  of  for- 

eign matter,  so  do  repeated  baths  and  draughts  of 
these  hot  medicated  waters  wash  the  entire  system  free 
from  its  impurities  and  leave  the  body  clean. 

Is  not  that,  then,  a  favored  spot,  where  healing 
waters  gush  forth  in  unstinted  flow,  amid  surroundings 
which,  even  were  there  no  medicinal  fountains,  would 
still  be  unrivaled  in  the  possession  of  recuperative 
elements?  And  when  to  these  are  added  vistas  of 
grass-grown  meadows  between  the  notches  of  hills  set 
thick  with  pine  and  fir,  watered  by  a  stream  that  flows 
out  from  steep  rocky  walls  into  winding  courses  beneath 
the   shade    of   vnllow  and   alder  and  aspen  and  maple. 


idling  here  aud  there  in  transparent  pools  to  have  a 
word  with  the  trout ;  canons  penetrating  the  mountain 
sides,  overhung  by  precipices  faced  with  tree  and  crag; 
lofty  lookouts  and  deep  secret  dells,  and  far  glimpses 
of  purple  shadowed  ranges  knocking  their  heads  against 
the  distant  sky;  must  not  such  a  spot  be  worth  going 
far  to  see  and  know?  Well,  that  is  Las  Vegas  Hot 
Springs,  only  with  a  greater  diversity  of  beauty  and  a 
subtler  charm  than  so  brief  a  description  can  convey. 
Nature  did  not  design  it  for  the  sick  alone,  although 
for  them  she  made  particular  provision  ;  the  tourist 
who  desires  a  new  sensation  ;  the  student  of  the  ruins 
of  antiquity ;  the  dreamer  who  delights  in  mementos 
and  suggestions  of  a  romantic  and  irrecoverable  past ; 
the  lover  of  nature  who  prizes  imperishable  memories 
of  exalted  scenic  beauty ;  the  sportsman,  devotee  of 
the  rod  and  gun  ;  the  man  of  business  who  seeks  relief 
from  harassing  cares  in  a  retirement  at  once  secluded 
and  invigorating ;  and  the  vast  general  public  that 
appreciates   the  delights  and  benefits   of  an  occasional 


sojourn  in  some  favored  spot  where  the  cHmate  is  mild, 
the  sunshine  constant  and  the  air  inspiring,  and  where 
rest,  health  and  profitable  pleasures  are  combined  ; — 
these,  equally  with  the  invalid  in  quest  of  surroundings 
whose  medicinal  virtues  shall  restore  his  vanished 
health,  are  welcome  guests.  They  will  find  at  Las 
Vegas  Hot  Springs  not  only  the  natural  attractions 
that  have  been  described  and  suggested,  but  a  crown- 
ing provision  for  their  comfort  and  happiness  in  the 
luxurious  and  perfectly  appointed  Montezuma  Hotel, — 
the  only  thing  that  was  want- 
___Sfe^^j^  ing,  after  the  completion   of 

I'^jrfj^-^iTp^  #^       1      the  railroad, 

^^^f^''   to  place  this 
"     ideal  sanitarium 

.  .  „^,  :.,  •  -    ,^^,ji,!b--^'     '^.ffiij'^"'**"'— _JS'-"^^" ■  ^^  service 

■^^^^^C^---  hMt-.,-^^^^-  of  all  mankind. 

The  Montezuma  is  a 

'■.<•-._  perpetual   surprise  and  delight 

to  visitors,  no  matter  what  they 

BATH    HOUSE. 

may  have  been  led  to  expect 
before  going  to  the  Springs,  for  it  is  not  easy  to  believe 
in  the  actual  existence  of  a  hotel  so  extensive  and 
magnificent,  so  complete  and  modern  in  every  particu- 
lar, nestled  against  the  side  of  a  caiion  far  from  the 
accustomed  home  of  lavish  expenditure.  The  dream  of 
a  genie  slumbering  amid  his  treasures;  that  is  the 
Montezuma. 

There  is  ample  accommodation  for  hundreds  in  its 
numerous  apartments,  abundant  room  for  a  multitude 
on  its  spacious  sunny  verandas.      The    baths    are    close 


at  hand,  with  every  facility     ■-  ;  \ ■.::.'^ .,>.",T':^'ffl'    m 
and  every  modern  method  ' " ~'''~^''ii  vf i  "  t^' 

of   apphcation    under   the    -       /i^r«^,,. '  ^Ai«il-!1^ 
direction     of     specially  'Jj^p^^Wf^'^^ 

trained  attendants.    Saddle  T^^^^^       '  >«.',,  j/ 

horses  and  conveyances  are  te^-^^!- '/4i  ' 

at  the  disposal  of  those  who  wish  to  penetrate  %    jtm^f^j^^vi'  jj; 
farther  into  mountain  solitudes  than  is  practi-  •      "^  -  •'' 
cable  for  the  pedestrian.     There  are  trout  for    hotkl  office. 
fishermen ;    quail,   ducks    and    geese    abound, 
and  larger  game  may  be  found  in  the  forest  by  hunters 
who    crave    the    rewards    of    a    more    toilsome    chase. 
Decayed   monuments   of  pre-historic   peoples   exist  for 
the    beguilement    of   the    archaeologist    and    historian. 
Music,  dancing,  billiards  and  bowling  are  provided  for 
the  lovers    of  such   pleasures.     And   yet,  so  broad  and 
peaceful   is   the    environment,  an  air  of  quiet  rest  per- 
vades the  scene,  and  the  invalid  is  undisturbed  by  the 
activities  of  his  more  robust  fellows. 

Neither  need  one  contemplate  from  afar  the  possible 
fatigue  of  a  journey.  Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs  is  less 
than  two  days  ride  by  rail  from  Chicago  and  St.  Louis, 
and  from  those  cities,  as  well  as  from  intervening  points, 
through  palace  sleeping  cars  run  daily  to  Las  Vegas 
without  change  ;  while,  from  the  south,  as  far  as  the 
City  of  Mexico,  and  from  the  west  as  far  as  California, 
the  same  comfort-ensuring  facilities  exist. 

Round  trip  tickets  to  Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs  at 
greatly  reduced  rates  may  be  obtained  throughout  the 
year. 


III. 


*    *    IRcw  /IDcjican  Sftctcbes. 


27 


A  BACKWARD  VIEW. 

"Ny  OOK  out   from   the   open  window  of 
'■  your  room  in   the   Montezuma, 

through  which  a  cool,  sweet  current 
is  gently  blowing.  Far  below,  at 
the  foot  of  the  path  that  winds  along 
green  terraces,  a  fountain  plays  among 
the  trees  and  shrubs  of  a  plaza,  behind 
which,  as  also  to  the  right,  rise  steep 
tree-clad  slopes,  sierras  cresting  an  elevation  already 
more  than  a  mile  above  the  sea.  To  the  left  the  vegas 
stretch  away  for  sixty  miles,  their  undulations  softened 
by  distance  into  an  inviting  plain  of  every  conceivable 
shade  of  green,  gilded  by  the  morning  sun.  Rest, 
peace,  security,  everywhere  meet  the  sight.  It  is  a 
hushed  sabbath  of  beneficent  nature,  made  more 
impressive  by  recollection  of  a  time,  not  long  past, 
when  romance  and  terror  lurked  beneath  the  same 
smiling  face  of  that  landscape,  then  no  less  inviting, 
no  less  fair.  And  as  you  gaze  you  will  reflect  upon  a 
still  older  time,  when  down  the  mountain  side  and 
out  over  the  grassy  vegas,  his  eye  beholding  nearly 
the  precise  picture  upon  which  yours  dwells,  strode 
an  heroic  pioneer,  a  knight  in  clanking  armor,  a 
gigantic  figure  in  romantic  annals — the  First  Invader. 
It  is  easy  to  fancy  yourself  face  to   face  with  the  six- 


teenth  century.  You  almost 
look  for  the  print  of  the  ^-'-  - 
knight's  heel  in  the  grass.  It 
was  yesterday  he  passed.  And 
there  is  a  legend  that  if  one 
should  journey  eastward  for  many 
wearisome,  hazardous  months  one 
would  come  upon  Atlantic  shores,  but  meet  no  living 
soul  except  lost  heathen.  And  to  the  north  and  west 
lies  an  unexplored  land  of  undetermined  bounds,  full 
of  allurement  and  mystery  and  peril.  It  is  the  genius 
of  the  true  Christian  to  adventure  and  win  earth  from 
pagan  rule.  Great  will  be  the  reward  of  endeavor. 
The  entire  kingdom,  a  thousand  leagues  across  the 
sea,  is  agog  for  news  of  the  New  World.  Already  in 
anticipation  its  acclamations  greet  the  hungry  ear  of 
the  warrior  who  is  resolved  to  plant  its  banner  in  the 
heart  of  an  unclaimed  wilderness  and  bring  under  the 
dominion  of  the  Cross  unnumbered  m^ultitudes  of 
benighted  souls.  But  the  way  is  hard;  graves  lie  scat- 
tered behind ;  and  the  soldiers  murmxir  and  wonder 
whose  sturdy  frame  will  next  succumb  to  the  rigors  oi 
the  task,  whose  voice  will  next  be  missed  from  the 
camp-fire  song.  Yesterday?  He  stands  before  you 
^^^  now,  that  Invader,  his  stern,  swart 

.      -<^^^^^  face    bent    uncompromisingly    on 

you,  faint-hearted  follower  that 
you  are,  his  extended  arm  still 
northward  pointing.  ^'Forward, 
for  God  and  Spain!''  he  thunders. 
But    with    a    sensation     of    relief 


tm;^. 


THE   riRST   INVADER, 


entirely  unheroic,  you  will  scram- 
ble back  to  the  extreme  rear  of 
the  nineteenth  century  and  go  to 
breakfast  instead. 

Yet,  in  spite  of  the  romantic 
achievements  of  the  fifteenth  and 
sixteenth  centuries,  never  was 
there  more  miraculous  doing  on 
the  face  of  this  round  world  than 
in  our  own  time.  The  soldier  in 
armor  threaded  a  perilous  way 
over  these  mountains  and  across 
these  upland  plains  and  lifted 
here  the  standard  of  Spain  ;  and 
the  wilderness  closed  behind  him 
upon  a  bedouin  race  unconquered  and  unyielding. 
The  locomotive  came,  morning  sun  of  our  later  day, 
and  the  bedouin  fled  ;  and  the  scattering  mist  revealed 
the  benignant  Saxon  ruling  the  land,  irresistible  and 
serene.  It  is  well  that  he  is  benignant,  that  Saxon, 
for  he  is  a  terrible  man.  Or,  rather,  he  is  the  mani- 
festation of  a  law  of  earth  that 
out  of  the  north  and  east  shall 
come  strength  and  power.  The 
west  wind  never  wafted  the 
fleet  of  a  conqueror,  the  tropics 
never  threw  victorious  armies 
into  the  upper  zones; 
the  shadow  of  the  domi- 
nant man  advances  with 
the  sun,  and  Boreas  is  at 


his  back.  He  built  the  Montezuma. 
Yonder,  if  you  seek  the  contra.st, 
observe  the  chief  comtnemorative 
monument  of  his  world-subjugating 
predecessor — a  squat  adobe  hut,  in- 
habited by  a  brown-faced,  black- 
eyed,  black-haired  family,  picturesque  in  appearance, 
courtly  in  manner,  but  insulated,  isolated,  as  foreign  to 
our  real  American  life  as  if  they  dwelt  beyond  the  sea. 
As  for  the  bedouin  Indian,  you  shall  seek  an 
example  of  his  prime  in  vain.  Only  cowed  rem- 
nants of  him  are  scattered  here  and  there, 
disreputably  arrayed,  dethroned  and  ridic- 
ulous. 

And  while  you  are  making  onset  upon 
an  excellent  morning  meal  in  the  aesthetic 
dining  hall  of  the  Montezuma,  the 
inhabitants  of  the  adobes  will  be 
masticating  dried  kid  and  chili. 
;  The  aborigine  has  apparently 
schooled  himself  not  to  eat,  since 
the  pillaging  of  the  Saxon  is  be- 
come for  him  a  thing  forever  past. 


GERONIMO. 


32 


vit^Sg*??' 


is   situated   in    tin 
vkxiru,  at  ;ia  cUrvatiou  of  6,767  icil 
.lesuiisliiue  is  constant  and  the  c6p\ 
V  of  tlie  air  are  ulwayrt  iuvigoi-ating.     It  is  lu 
'  d.lias  tlie  best  of  accotnmodations  for  .sever:: 
I  its  table  is  suj)plicd  with  every  staple  and 
^•-nth,  Kast  and  West.     The  dry,  eqnriM- 
.  particularly  recommended  by  ph^ 
■  ni  hay  fever,  asthma,  catarrh  or  e- 
-  of  the  hf)t  niineral  springs  are  • 
ut,   blood    poison,    diseases  of    the 
iloii'^  diseases,  tntflital  exhnnstion    (h-'>il 
dyspopsi. 


\  rrj-.NiiANei:,  n 
Vuirar  and  Pack,  $ia>o 


Tuh 


•  5<> 


Mud,  three  for.. $5 
"      five  for  ...    >; 
seven  for  .  h  ■ 
ten  for  — 


'.a'^  \  (.-gas  Hot  Springs  is  six  iiules  ilisianl  Jrom  Las  \  ■. 
i  '\Mi  on  the  main  line  of  the  vSanta  7^6  Route,  through  -sv : 
!lirough  Pullman  palace  sleeping  cars*are   run  df\ily  to 
^rom  Chicago,  St.  Tvouis,  Ivansas  City  and  intermediate  pi 
'  !ie,t,'ast,  Denver,  Colorado  Spritigs  and  Pueblo  on  the  ii' 
-.  ico  on  the  south,  and  California  on  thi    v.  .-,f      -vA 
trains. to  and  from  the  springs  make  close  • 
!}i  rough  trains. 

For  hotel  rates  address  the  mana 
' .  f    Vegas  Hot  Springs,  New  Mexico. 

Round   trip  tickets  at  reduced  tat 
loruiation  desire<l,  may  be   obtained   from    ;iii\ 
-Santa  Fe  Route  throughout  the  countrv,  or  iti< 
addressed  to 

■VRNE,  As.si.sUiut  I'as.S(-nKer  Traffic  .Man.igci, 
-aiita  Fe  Route,  723  Moiimliiock  llidg-.,  CHIC 

^iCHOLSON,   General  Passenger  autl  'rickct  Agent, 
Atchison.  Toptka  &  Santa  Vd  Kailro.id,  TOfPf:  A 

n.  WISHART,  Ceneral  Passtngfcr  and  Ticket  Air. 
'       St.  I.ouis  i<t  San  l-'raiicisco  Kailway.  S'l 

'     'i.  THOMPSON,  General  Passenjjer  and  Ticket.  Agcu 
Gulf,  Colorado  &  Sant;i  W-  Kailw"     '    \'   ■' 

C.  S.  LEE,  General  Pas.sengt^r  and  Ticket  A 
Colorado  Midland  Knilw.ay.  ])KN> 

■V.   A.  BISSELL,  General  Pas.senger  Apicv.i. 
Atlantic  &  Pacific  Railroad, 

■^.   r..  HYNES,  General  Passen.i^er  ,\i;' 

.'^oiilliti  ;i   Crilifnriiia  K 


TOUCHING    BURROS. 


<^^  VERY   living   creature  is  respectable  in  his 


into  foreign  surroundings  is  he  wanting  in 
validity.  In  contemplating  an  occasional 
imported  specimen  of  the  burro  in  the  East 
it  is  possible  you  have  never  taken  him 
seriously.  In  New  Mexico,  then,  you  will 
make  amends,  for  you  will  find  him  entirely 
authentic  in  his  own  realm. 

Unenterprising,  fond  of  his  ease,  opinion- 
A|  ated,  and   a   doubter ;    that  is  the  burro  in 

outline,  up  to  his  ears.  As  for  those  huge  organs, 
they  were  evolved  to  enable  him  to  catch  the  faintest 
first  whisper  of  a  command  to  relapse  into  statuesque 
inacti%-ity.  In  point  of  fact,  they  serve  him  even 
better,  for  he  often  chooses  to  imagine  that  such  man- 
date has  issued  from  his  rider,  and  arrogant  in  the 
possession  of  his  appalling,  winglike  appendages  he 
stops,  absolutely — and  so  far  as  may  reasonably  be 
inferred  from  his  manner,  forever.  It  avails  nothing 
with  him  to  argue  that  j^ou  never  said  it.  He  droops 
an  ear  gratefully,  relaxes  a  hind  leg,  shifts  his  equi- 
poise over  upon  the  remaining  tripod,  and  waits  for 
the  end   of  the  world.     Only  the  most  emphatic  prod- 


33 


^r^"  w*^«.*(  ding  will  persuade  hitn  to 
..^  resume  his  reluctant  way.  If 
he  should  manifest  any  seem- 
"^^  ing  inclination  toward  alacrity 
it  will  be  due  to  his  discovery  that 
you  object  to  traveling  in  a  direction 
contrary  to  that  in  which  your  des- 
tination happens  to  lie.  In  the  flash  of  such  a  divina- 
tion he  is  capable  of  voluntary  activity,  and  will  even 
break  into  a  jog  trot  for  a  distance  of  twenty  yards — 
an  entirely  unprofitable  ebullition  of  energy,  if  you  are 
considering  your  own  interests,  for  his  progress  is  side- 
long, radiate,  tangential,  what  you  will  except  onward 
in  the  path  of  your  choice. 

It  is  better  not  to  betray  a  purpose  when  mounted 
upon  a  burro  ;  at  any  rate,  no  other  purpose  than  that 
he  shall  keep  in  motion.  To  effect  this  you  will  find 
the  best  weapon  a  goad,  improvised  from  a  stout  stick, 
whittled  to  a  point.  Prod  him  with  this  resolutely, 
vigorously,  frantically ;  prod  him  unceasingly.  You  will 
not  offend  him.  He  expects  it.  He  seems  to  like  it. 
But  do  not  ask  him  to  follow  so  logical  a  sequence  as 
a  path,  above  all  the  right  path.  Beat  about  the  bush, 
and  the  crag,  and  behave  as  if  you  were  going  nowhere 
in  particular.  Tack  him,  jibe 
him,  ease  him  off  the  instant  he  jC'^^ 

appears    to    divine    your    secret,     ^^s^^^'^^^ 
If  your  course  lies  directly  ^^^  .^ 

to  the  north,  be  content 
with  noi^thwest,  northeast, 
and  even  occasionally  south- 


hand. 


southwest ;  aud  if  you  fiud 
yourself  driftiug  too  decidedly 
into  southern  latitudes,  act  as 
if  you  were  eagerly  bound  for 
the  tropics ;  you  can  fool  him. 
It  is  well  to  change  the 
goad  frequently  from  hand  to 
This  not  only  enables  you  to  bear  up  longer 
against  fatigue,  but  doubles  the  likelihood  of  finding  a 
vulnerable  spot  in  his  callous  epidermis.  When  your 
strength  finally  fails  you  can  walk.  You  can  alwaj-s 
find  your  burro  again  when  you  want  him.  To  be 
entirely  truthful,  that  is  the  worst  of  a  burro,  that  you 
are  morally  certain  to  find  him  where  you  left  him, 
whether  you  want  to  or  not,  unless  you  have  been 
absent  so  long  that  hunger  has  forced  him  to  move. 

The  present  writer  does  not  regard  himself  as  gen- 
erally either  an  astute  or  a  vindictive  person,  but  it 
gives  him  a  malicious  satisfaction  to  this  da)^  to  remem- 
ber how  he  avenged  himself  on  his  first  (and  last) 
burro,  abandoned  in  despair  on  an  outward   trip  some 


three    miles   from    the    Montezuma, 
few  hours  later,  he  passed  the  con- 
tentedly waiting  creature  without  a 
glance   of  recognition   and 
footed    it   back  to    the    hotel 
with    a    merry    heart,    alone. 
Next  morning,  they  said,  the 
burro  was  found  behind  the  stable, 
limp,    despondent,    disgusted,   his 
long    cheeks    bedewed    with    tears. 


35 


ReturniusT,    some 


his  air  proclaiming  the  shadowed, 
misanthropic   soul    of   one    wha 

i-4^  has  been  betrayed  by  man  and 
possesses  an  ineradicable  griev- 
ance.     He   had    expected    to  be 

'  pushed  home. 


36 


'^. 


.4- 


''""^WSk  THE  PECOS  CHURCH. 


I  ROM  the  window  of  the  Pullmau 
car,  two  hours'  ride  below  Las 
Vegas,  may  be  seen,  a  few  miles 
away,  a  strange  brown  ruin  standing 
like  a  dismantled  castle  upon  a  fortress-like  elevation 
overlooking  the  surrounding  plain.  It  is  one  of  the 
Missions  founded  by  Franciscan  monks,  uobodj-  appears 
to  know  exactly  when,  but  doubtless  soon  after  the 
Spanish  invasion,  and  something  like  three  hundred 
years  ago.  On  account  of  its  location  at  the  Pecos 
pueblo  it  is  locally  known  as  the  Pecos  Church. 
Abandoned,  solitary,  forming  with  the  adjacent  debris 
of  still  more  ancient  structures  the  only  visible  sign 
and  handiwork  of  man  in  that  lonely  valle}-,  it  was 
once  the  center  of  a  busy  throng,  and  often  the  scene 
of  savage  warfare. 

It  may  be  reached  by  a  ^our-mile  drive  from  the 
small  station  Rowe,  over  that  highway  of  romantic 
memory,  the  old  Santa  Fe  Trail.  Although  a  valley 
hemmed  in  by  mountains,  the  level  table  land  is  eleva- 
ted some  7,000  feet  above  the  sea.  It  stretches  broadlj- 
before  the  eye,  an  arable  plain,  unbroken  save  by 
occasional  arroyos  and  the  single  mound  that  rises 
nearl}-    in    the    center,    buttressed    on    three    sides  by 


37 


enormous  crags,  bastions  invulnerable  to  the  assault  of 
an  enemy,  although  the  hand  of  man  had  nothing  to 
do  with  its  building.  Upon  this  natural  elevation  the 
ruin  stands  like  a  watch-tower,  an  adobe  shell,  roofless 
and  desolate,  backed  by  the  debris  of  what  was  once 
a  pueblo,  a  tribal  Indian  home.     Stern  must  have  been 


PECOS  CHXTRCH. 


the  necessity  that  forced  a  peaceful  primitive  people 
like  the  Pueblos  to  choose  a  stronghold  for  their 
dwelling  place,  and  doubtless  the  Franciscan  Fathers 
bowed  to  the  same  necessity  in  building  their  church 
upon   the   crown  of  that   citadel ;   for  though  there  is 


38 


■^i'|i|llillNilJ[,'|S"».*«- 


SAN    MIGl'lJI,. 


still  discernible   an   old   irriga- 
ting ditch  iu  evidence  of  once 
fruitful   fields   and  agricultural 
occupations,    in    two   hours' 
search  j'ou  may  find  upon  the 
surface  of  the  slopes  of  the  mound 
a  double   handful   of  arrow  heads, 
fashioned  from  flint  and  jasper  and 
saw-toothed    obsidian  ;    cruel,    jagged   things,    shot   by 
those   untameable  wild   men  whose   nature   is  to  make 
relentless  war  upon  every  people  except  their  own. 

Little  is  known  of  the  history  of  the  Pecos  Church  ; 
nothing  whatever  that  is  trustworthy  of  the  origin  of 
the  Pueblos,  who  differ  from  the  roving  Indian  tribes 
almost  as  widely  as  if  they  were  not  Indians  at  all. 
Say  that  they  were  stragglers  who  lagged  behind  in  the 
great  southward  march  of  the  Toltecs  twelve  hundred 
years  ago,  and  no  really  well  informed  person  will  be 
likely  to  dispute  you.  But  the  main  story  of  the  ruined 
church  is  readable  upon  its  crumbling  walls.  To  a 
peaceful,  populous  village  of  those  mysterious  Pueblo 
Indians,  huddled  in  their  curious  apartment  houses  of 
adobe  and  stones  upon  the  summit  of  this  mound, 
came  the  old  Spanish  priests,  and  preached  the  gospel ; 
and  for  the  better  preach- 
ing they  builded  a  Mission 
and  there  dwelt  for  a  space 
of  years  with  their  flock ; 
and  by  and  by  they  went 
away ;  and  they  and  their 
flock  are  no  more. 


39 


CHAPKI,    KOSARIO. 


PUF.r.I.O    OF    LAGT'XA. 


^"i^^'Lj-  Inclined  to 
religious  rites,  to 
peace  and  the 
gentle  pursuits  of 
agriculture,  the 
Pecos  Indians  still 
were  stubborn 
fighters  for  their 
homes  and  their 
kin.  Their  enemies  were  unable  to  dislodge  them, 
unless  the  final  removal  of  the  remnant  of  the  tribe  to 
the  banks  of  the  Rio  Grande  fifty  3-ears  ago  was  an 
ultimate  concession  to  hostility.  At  any  rate  they 
remained  long  after  the  priests  had  departed,  and  so 
long  as  they  remained  (so  the  tradition  runs),  there 
ceased  not  from  the  altar  of  the  church  erected  to  the 
glory  of  the  Catholic  faith  a  fire,  by  night  or  day,  a 
vestal  flame,  maintained  by  the  Pueblos  in  expectation 
of  Montezuma' s  return  to  earth  and  power. 

The  demi-gods  have  their  habitat  as  surelj-  as  plant 
or  animal  species.  Each  must  be  sought  upon  his 
particular  Olympus ;  and  because  Montezuma  is  not 
to  be  found  wdthin  the  boundaries  of  New  England, 
nor  anywhere  upon  the  prairies  of  the  western  states, 
one  must  not  therefore  deny  him  in  the  land  of  echo- 
ing canons,  of  desert  tracts,  of  cacti,  of  lofty  altitudes, 
and,  withal,  of  abundant  verdure,  flowers  and  fruits, 
and  of  pure  air  and  sunshine.  Although  you  may  be 
justified  in  hearkening  to  the  tradition  of  the  vestal 
flame  with  mental  resers'ations,  and  may  have  a  shrewd 
notion  that  the  divinity  INIontezuma  is  but  an  apotheo- 


sized  Aztec  emperor  fallen  heir  to  the  old  clothes  of 
the  god  of  his  worship,  Quetzalcoatl,  5-ou  will  not 
unlikely  gain  a  juster  sense  of  the  difficulties  of 
engrafting  the  idealism  of  a  higher  race  upon  the 
superstitions  of  a  lower.  And  while  you  muse  by  the 
walls  of  the  old  church  and  tr}-  to  picture  a  rotund, 
shaven,  tonsured,  cowled  company  of  godly  men  in 
^-v-ivgs  such  an  incongruous  setting,  three  centuries  ago, 
^^-7^:  and  then  view  the  tremendous  gulf  that  inter- 
venes between  that  time  and  the  da}^ 
when  the  stones  upon  which  j-ou  sit 
were  first  piled  into  rude  dwellings  for 
man,  you  will  reflect  that  the  evolution 
of  pagan  gods  is  a  very  human  thing. 
As  distance  is  the  first  essential  of  a 
landscape,  so  some  degree  of  remoteness 
in  experience  or  space  or  time  is  neces- 
sary to  the  appreciation  of  poetic  beauty, 
and,  perhaps,  in  turn  creates  it.  We 
dream  of  yesterday  and  tomorrow.  No- 
bod}-  ever  wrote  an  ode  to  the  noonday 
sun ;  it  is  only  his  rising  and  setting 
that  limners  paint  and  poets  sing;  the 
day  that  is  gone,  and  the  day  that  will 
come.  There  is  no  people,  no  land,  so 
poor  in  poetry  as  not  to  possess  a 
yesterda)-.  Everywhere  you  will  find  some  tradition  of 
an  Odysseus,  a  Buddha,  a  Moses.  "To  ever}'  nation," 
says  the  Koran,  "God  hath  given  a  prophet  in  its  own 
tongue."  And  in  whatsoever  manner  his  own  may 
have   received   him,  time   deals   liberally  with    a   great 


^=5* 


PUEBLO   WOMEN'    OF    ISLKTA 


man.  It  will  uot  have  him  appear  quite  mortal  to  the 
distant  view.  It  swathes  him  in  atmospheric  haze  that 
obliterates  something  of  his  human  outline,  and  more 
and  more  as  we  recede.  Who  among  li^dng  mouarchs- 
can  be  compared  to  King  Solomon  ?  And  can  another 
Cleopatra  ever  live  upon  this  earth  ?  Already  Napoleon 
has  become  a  semi-myth,  an  almost  incredible  tradition 
of  demonic  force,  an  Attila-scourge,  withheld  only  by 
the  interposition  of  heaven  from  overrunning  the  world. 
And  no  man,  unrebuked,  may  now  whisper  that  oiu-  own 
first  national  hero  ever  laughed  in  his  sleeve  upon  the 
consummation  of  a  horse  trade.  Time  would  fain  have 
it  so,  and  poetry  demands  it.  Let  us  therefore  forget 
of  Montezuma  that,  like  Homer,  he  may  be  a  compo- 
site hero.  Let  him  have  all  his  halo  and  at  least  half 
a  dozen  ways  of  spelling  his  name.  Let  him  be  prince 
and  prophet  and  redeemer  to  a  mysterious  people 
whose  minds  cannot  grasp  our  finer  symbols  of  divinity. 
Let  him  be  the  personification  of  a  heathen  idea  which, 
stubborn  as  the  Pueblos  themselves,  still  dwells  in  the 
canons  of  New  Mexico. 


MOUNTAIN  TROUT  AND  QUAIL. 

-HE    Pecos   River   is   one   of  the   best   trout 
streams   in   the   United   States.     The   trout 
do  not  attain  the  size  of  those  in  the  Rio 
Grande    in    the    State    of   Colorado,    but    in 
number  and  voracity  they  satisfy  the  greedi- 
est carrier  of  a  creel.     Rarely  weighing  less 
than  half  a  pound,  they  often  tip  the  scale 
at  over  a  pound,  and  two-pounders  are  not 
infrequently  taken.     Four  miles  beyond  the 
Pecos  Church,  almost  on   the   river  bank   and 
in  the  heart  of  the  best  fishing,  is  a  comfort- 
able   ranch-house,    where   excellent 
accommodations  in  the  way  of  meals  .  '  _^ 

and  lodging  may  be  obtained.  Here,  .-. -i^^ 

also,  is  the  location  of  the  pro- 
posed National  Park.  , 
For  many  miles  the  stream  / 
oflFers  the  perfection  of  fly-fishing. 
Here  and  there  are  pools  too 
deep  for  wading,  but  the  fisher- 
man equipped  with  hip-boots  is 
seldom  forced  to  the  bank.  Fol- 
lowing the  winding  shallows,  the 
entire    stream    may   be    whipped. 


■iJii 


43 


left  and  right,  and  every  lurking-place  under  project- 
ing shore  and  bough  explored  with  a  cast  of  flies.  In 
a  delightful  three  days  upon  this  river,  the  writer 
recalls  but  two  occasions  of  even  momentary  embar- 
rassment to  his  leader  by  bush  or  branch,  and  the 
avidity  with  which  the  Pecos  trout  rise  to  a  fly,  and 
the  determination  with  which  they  resist  capture,  has 
rarely  been  equaled  in  his  experience. 

What  manner  of  soul  has  he  who  does  not  love  to- 
drop  a  cast  across  the  translucent  riffles  of  a  stream 
that  chatters  endlessly  over  sand  and  pebble  and 
ledge,  through  glimpses  of  field  and  wood  and  gorge, 
under  a  friendly  sky?  In  every  seductive  shoal  there 
lies  a  tremendous  moment  of  suspense,  an  absorbing 
riddle  one  never  wearies  of  guessing.  The  powerful 
and  somewhat  complex  charm  of  fishing  is  not  com- 
prehended by  those  who  deprecate  the  sport.  It  was 
not  the  size,  or  number,  or  greediness  of  the  trout 
that  made  old  Walton  declare  that  "other  joys  are  but 
toys ' ' ;  and  if  the  trout  imagine  they  alone  make  or 
unmake  the  fisherman's  joy  they  are  a  fatuous  lot  — 
his  main  business  is  with  the  brooding  mother  of 
us   all. 

There  are  those  who 
would  have  us  think 
that  the  sportsman 
is  a  barbarian  —  that 
he  who  can  compla- 
cently asphyxiate 
inoffensive  fishes  and 
slaughter  innocent 


birds  has  not  at- 
tained to  perfect 
civilization — is,    in 

-  fact,    hopelessly   be- 
,    low    that    state    of 

-  grace.       Although 
New   Mexican   trout 

are  a  comparatively  easy 
_^  prey,     the     hunter    of 

mountain  quail,  to  be 
quite  candid,  is  not  necessarily  so  murderous  in  fact 
as  in  appearance.  The  question  of  the  fate  of  an  upris- 
ing quail  never  outgrows  the  small  dignity  of  a  riddle 
with  many  gunners.  "  Shall  I  get  him  ?  "  That  is  their 
query.  They  guess  with  the  right  barrel,  often  guess 
again  with  the  left,  and  not  infrequentl}^  after  both 
guesses  find  themselves  wthout  a  pang  of  conscience — 
and  without  the  bird. 

He  who  cares  to  try 
his  hand  at  mountain 
quail  will  find  an  abun- 
dance of  two  very  sprightly 
varieties  of  that  game-bird 
in  numberless  New  Mexi- 
can localities.  The  tyro 
vrill  need  all  his  self-com- 
mand in  the  first  few  en- 
counters. These  quail  are 
fleet-footed,  and  take  to 
their  wings  reluctantly, 
preferring  at  first  to  attempt 


nt— 


escape  b}-  running.  A  sharp  pur- 
suit forces  them  to  flight,  and  as  a 
covey  usually  numbers  scores,  and 
sometimes  even  hundreds,  the  clat- 
ter of  their  simultaneous  uprising 
is  extremely  disconcerting  to  inex- 
perienced ner\^es.  Their  flight  is 
,,  --  short,  and  upon  this  fact  is  based 
the  only  effectual  method  of  hunt- 
ing them.  One  must  pursue,  and 
'i'i^.'- .'',i;ii-..i- ..  ,^.  shoot  without  regard  to  bagging, 
until  several  rapid  flushings  and 
repeated  salvos  have  robbed  them 
of  confidence  in  their  legs  and 
•5-*,-;.  wings.     Then  they  scatter  and  lie 

close.  At  this  juncture  only  is  a  dog  serviceable,  and 
fair  sport  may  be  had  without  one,  as  after  the  birds 
have  been  thus  bewnldered  they  will  lie  until  the 
ground  has  been  pretty  thoroughly  beaten  up,  and  will 
offer  successive  singles  and  doubles  in  abundance  a* 
they  are  closely  approached. 

It  is  mainly  in  the  first  stages  of  pursuit,  as  above 
described,    that    the 

habits  of  the  mountain    ~  't' 

quail  are  seen  to  differ  ^^^ 

from  those  of  his  east-  J^w^tL-^  "''''•) 

ern  brother,  Bob  White.  -^^-^pt* 

When    the    work   has 
fairly  begun,  the  sports- 
man will  find  him       '•  ,,, 
as  sudden  and  swift 


■M 


a  target  as  Bob  himself,  and  capable  of  carrying  off 
quite  as  many  stray  pellets  of  lead.  Often  will  he 
leave  a  shower  of  feathers  floating  in  his  wake  and 
make  some  port  in  safety,  notwithstanding. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 

This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


nrns 


ra   9       ^^ 


1CT03 


Form  L9-50to-7,'54(5990)444 


THE  LIBKAKr 

BHXVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  AJSGELEa 


iiiggins__- 

[ -V  ^     Land  of  sunshine 


UCLA-Young  Research  Library 

F797  .H53I 

y 


L  009  537  694  3 


UC  aOUTH[  Rf-j  Hi  (;i(lNAI   I  IRHARY  l-Ai:il  ITY 


AA     001  332  888       5 


